Open and shut: Pink's hot dogs in Camarillo announces opening date

Pink’s skipped having a booth at the Ventura County Fair this year, but its menu of hot dogs and hamburgers named for celebrities will soon be available in the region on a more permanent basis.

A local version of the Hollywood hot dog stand is scheduled to mark its soft opening at 10 a.m. Aug. 15 in The Promenade section of the Camarillo Premium Outlets, where a “Pink’s” sign is already on display between Wilson’s Leather and Los Arroyos Mexican Restaurant. A temporary sign taped to the front door reads, “Pink’s will be opening the middle of August.”

The new restaurant will serve a hot dog created just for the location, said Richard Pink, co-owner of the business founded in 1939 by his parents, Paul and Betty Pink. Dubbed the Route 101 dog, it will feature a spicy Polish dog topped with nacho cheese, American cheese, grilled onions and chopped tomatoes.

Other menu selections will include Pink’s trademark bacon chili cheese dog, the Guadalajara dog made with relish, onions, tomatoes and sour cream, and the Italian dog topped with sautéed peppers, onions and mushrooms and finished with chopped tomatoes and melted mozzarella cheese, Pink said.

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The Jaws burger, a jaw-popping combination that includes chili, cheese, a hamburger patty, a Polish dog and several strips of bacon, will also be available. So, too, will be turkey dogs, turkey burgers, corn dogs and chicken fingers, Pink said.

The restaurant’s decor includes gleaming white subway tiles, red-and-white upholstered booths and, on one wall, a depiction of the Hollywood sign against a street map of the neighborhood.

The soft opening will be followed by grand-opening festivities in the fall — and, in 2019, the possible reappearance of the Pink’s food booth.

“We love the Ventura County Fair,” said Pink. “We hope to return next year.”

Once open, the Camarillo restaurant will operate from 10 a.m. to 10 p.m. Mondays through Saturdays and 10 a.m. to 7 p.m. Sundays (630 E. Ventura Blvd., Suite 1215, 805-455-7619, http://www.pinkshollywood.com).

In Oxnard, the California Welcome Center at 2786 Seaglass Way in The Collection at RiverPark is scheduled to close on Sept. 2. The tourist-information site opened in 2013 and was operated by the Oxnard Convention & Visitors Bureau, which will continue to serve the public at its existing location at 2775 N. Ventura Road, Suite 204.

In 2014, the welcome center became the first in the state to offer wine tasting by way of a Ventura County Wine Trail-branded area equipped with self-service machines. The feature was discontinued on July 25 in preparation for the closure, said Julie Mino, president and CEO of the OCVB.

“We just decided that, with the decline in foot traffic and the rise of the way people receive information these days, the return on the investment wasn’t there,” said Mino. “We’re do foresee a rise in foot traffic at our own location, and are looking forward to helping visitors there.”

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A clearance sale is on now for selected items from the center’s on-site shop stocked with T-shirts and souvenirs. Hours are from 9:30 a.m. to 6 p.m. Mondays through Saturdays and noon to 5 p.m. Sundays. For information, visit https://visitoxnard.com.

In Port Hueneme, the first Ventura County location of Peebee & Jay’s opened Aug. 6 in the Ralphs/CVS shopping center across from Naval Base Ventura County. The restaurant, which also has a site in Carpinteria, offers salads, soups and sandwiches, the latter in hot, cold, vegetarian, build-your-own and signature variations.

Options include “Chicken Dressed Up Like a Salad” ($10.95), featuring sliced chicken with bacon, avocado, balsamic rosemary spread, gorgonzola spread, hard-boiled egg, French fried onions, ranch dressing, lettuce and (whew!) tomato. Also available: half a sandwich with a bowl of soup or half a salad ($9.50) and a PB&J made with seasonal preserves from Carpinteria-based Red Hen Cannery. Hours are from 10:30 a.m. to 6 p.m. daily (601 W. Channel Islands Blvd., 805-366-0542, http://www.peebeeandjaysph.com).

In Westlake Village, what closed in July 2017 as Jeannine’s Gourmet Food Hall at The Shoppes at Westlake Village has been claimed as the future home of Novo Cafe. The Italian restaurant opened its first location in 2013 in Burbank.

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“I love the space — the location, the shopping center,” said owner Massimo Forti, a native of Florence, Italy, who now lives in Agoura Hills.

Forti described the future Westlake Village location as, “like a mini-Eataly in Century City,” with a coffee shop, a market, a grab-and-go space for paninis and salads, a cheese bar and, on the menu, fresh pasta made in-house. Vegan and gluten-free options will be available. The new restaurant will also offer full bar service.

An early fall opening is anticipated, Forti said (30770 Russell Ranch Road, Suite 6). For a sneak peek, check the Novo Cafe website at http://www.novocafe.com.

Farther south, Ampersand Calabasas is headed for a November debut at what co-owner Bernard Rosenson previously operated as Bernard’s Wine Gallery (23538 Calabasas Road). Rosenson also once had a similarly named business in Oxnard.

Rosenson and son Jonathan Rosenson are teaming up for Ampersand after opening First & Oak at the Mirabelle Inn in Solvang in 2016. They also own Erna’s Elderberry House Restaurant at Château du Sureau in Oakhurst, and recently acquired the former Payne Mansion — once billed as San Francisco’s most expensive Airbnb listing — with an eye toward turning the 13-bedroom property into Mansion on Sutter, a boutique hotel with an on-site restaurant.

When it opens, Ampersand will feature a 40-seat, U-shaped bar in the front room, with additional seating inside and on an outdoor patio. The “California-eclectic” menu will showcase local ingredients, a pizza oven and house-made ice creams, in addition to a wine list that is sure to include Coquelicot Estate Vineyards — the Rosensons’ Santa Ynez Valley-based label (http://ampersandcalabasas.com).

To the north, the owners of Sly’s in Carpinteria last week announced that they plan to retire and close the restaurant on Sept. 23. The closure follows the business’ 10th anniversary celebration on Aug. 8, when, in accordance with tradition, chef-owner James Sly and wife and co-owner Annie Sly presented each diner with a ripe tomato grown by Beylik Family Farms in Fillmore.

Sly’s is open from 3 p.m. Mondays through Fridays and from 9 a.m. Saturdays and Sundays (686 Linden Ave., 805-684-6666, https://slysonline.com/menus).

Lisa McKinnon is a staff writer for The Star. To contact her, send email to lisa.mckinnon@vcstar.com. To have the VCS Eats newsletter delivered directly to your inbox, visit http://bit.ly/VCS_Eats and type in your email address.